﻿Santa Clara County Getting to Zero Initiative Awards Second Round of Mini-Grants

October 5, 2017

San Jose, CA – The Santa Clara County Getting to Zero Initiative today announced grants totaling $71,489 to four local organizations working for the health and wellness of County residents affected by HIV. Another $28,511 is expected to be awarded later this year, totaling $100,000.

A collaboration between the County of Santa Clara and community partners, including The Health Trust, the Getting to Zero Initiative aims to build a Santa Clara County with “zero new HIV infections, zero deaths from HIV, and zero stigma related to HIV.” Santa Clara County provides the funding from which the grants are awarded.

“Last year’s grantees did an amazing job creating engaging outreach campaigns and services for at-risk communities,” said Santa Clara County Supervisor Ken Yeager. “Getting to Zero will require leveraging the combined strength of our community organizations. I look forward to seeing what this year’s awardees will do.”

The Getting to Zero Initiative awards grants each year to promote community agencies’ ability to recognize and respond to HIV prevention needs. These grants are being awarded each year from 2016 through 2020. This is the second year of the awards. As in previous years, this year, community-based organizations, public agencies, clinics, schools and other groups competed for these grants to support the Getting to Zero campaign in one or more of four priority areas:

Access to HIV Pre-Exposure and Post-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP and PeP)Guideline-based STD Screening and HIV TestingInitiation of Care and Retention in Care for HIVReduction of Stigma

San Jose State University Research Foundation – $20,000 – Goal: To reduce stigma and promote PrEP and PEP access, and Guideline-based STD Screening and HIV Testing. Project: SJSU To Zero – HIV Prevention and Stigma Reduction at San Jose State University

“The innovative projects funded by these grants will be a vital addition to the work going on across the County to prevent the spread of HIV and improve the lives of people living with HIV,” said Dr. Sarah Lewis, STD/HIV Controller at the Santa Clara County Public Health Department.

As of 2016, there were 2,648 people living with a diagnosis of HIV/AIDS in Santa Clara County, with 134 new cases in 2016. An additional estimated 9% of persons with HIV in the State of California are unaware of their infection. The progress made thus far to decrease the number of new infections and improve the health of those living with HIV has relied on a wide range of health and community providers working together in innovative ways. Read more about HIV prevention in Santa Clara County.